Posts Tagged ‘gaming experience’

Atlantica Online still going strong, adds sixth server

Tuesday, March 3rd, 2009

The number one free-to-play title of 2008, as determined by both the Korea Game Awards and Ten Ton Hammer, Atlantica Online is going stronger than ever, and has recently added a sixth server to meet player demand.

atlanticaNDOORS Interactive, creators of the strategic, turn based MMORPG, Atlantica Online announced yesterday that they will be opening their sixth server, Delphi, to meet growing customer demand. NDOORS notes that each day the Atlantica population grows, and that this increased server capacity improves the games’ performance and brings out the very best in the game.  This shiny new sixth server (and you KNOW the name Caprica was tossed around the table once or twice) is chock full of NDOORS’ new content updates, and is prepared to welcome thousands of new Atlantica residents with a smooth gaming experience, and will allow veteran players the opportunity to start anew and check on the newly introduced character classes.

Peter Kang, CEO of NDOORS states, “”The opening of Atlantica’s 6th server is a result of the game’s steady growth in membership. With the announcement of our latest update on Feb. 18, we’ve seen a 55% jump in the number of new people registering to play. We want to welcome new players into our community, and make sure we’re providing them a smooth and seamless Atlantica experience. We also want to reward those who have been with us for a long time, including the 34% of our level 100 players who have already started at the beginning again with the new Maniac character. Hosting the ‘Fortnight of the Oracle’ is our way of showing players that we appreciate them and are committed to keeping the experience fresh and exciting.”

To celebrate Delphi’s March 6th opening, NDOORS will be hosting the ‘Fortnight of the Oracle’, a series of power leveling festivals.  Until Friday the 20th, users will receive a 120% experience bonus, raised to 150% when played on weekends.  This promo will certainly help you achieve higher levels faster, but it also provides veteran players with even more reason to try the Musician class.  Once players have reached their zenith at level 100, they may then unlock the new Maniac class.  NDOORS hasn’t just limited the action to power leveling, but also includes:

  • Level-up Race – More than 100 players will receive 1,000 Gcoins for reaching a designated level the fastest.
  • Screenshot Contest – Players who submit the best screenshots will receive Gcoin prizes.
  • Quiz Bowl – Players who correctly answer questions from GMs will receive in-game item prizes.
  • Monster Hunts – Unique enemies will be spawned at various sites for new players to battle and earn rewards.
  • Treasure Hunts and Item Giveaways – New players will have more opportunities to find crystals and scroll boxes and receive other free in-game items.

Get on baord with Atlantica Online today at: http://atlantica.ndoorsgames.com.

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Social Network hi5 introduces hi5 Games

Friday, February 6th, 2009

San Francisco based social network hi5 has recently announced the launch of hi5 Games, a vehicle for users to further interact with their social network contacts and meet new people.  With over 60 million unique visitors per month, hi5 is one of the world’s largest and fastest growing social networks.  hi5 Games will be presented in a fun and socially integrated gaming environment.

Setting itself apart from other social networks, hi5 focuses on deeply integrating social context within game content.  Their integrated messaging, challenge, and invite features also seek to make it a more compelling gaming experience with existing friends and easier to find new friends.

Staying true to their commitment of delivering fun and interactive ‘social entertainment’, hi5 Games represents a new and important monetization opportunity using hi5 coins.  hi5 Coins is the systems’ proprietary virtual currency, and will allow users to purchase premium content, advanced gaming features, and status upgrades via direct transactions.  In addition to these microtransactions, hi5 will also offer advertisers new and immersive options within hi5 Games, thereby allowing brands to better engage their ideal target audience.

“For our target audience of 15 to 24 year-olds, social gaming represents a major expenditure of time and money around the globe. hi5 Games is just one of a range of immersive features that will further engage our users, both keeping them on the site longer and driving them towards new forms of monetization for our business,” said Ramu Yalamanchi, founder and CEO of hi5.

hi5 Games kicks things off by offering players a variety of casual games in sports, arcade, strategy and card genres.  The site will be adding additional games on a monthly basis.  hi5 Games launch highlights include Disco Bowling, Pool, and Mahjong.

Any hi5 Games players out there?  We’d love to hear your feedback: Leave a comment below…

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NextGenBooks titles relaunch as free-to-play – console gamers flock in record numbers

Tuesday, September 9th, 2008

Since the relaunch of Warrior Quest two weeks ago, publisher NextGenBooks.com has seen a massive influx of console gamers to the already popular RPG.  Not just a random blip on the radar, NextGenBooks reports that the console audience has now outgrown the number of players accessing the title via PS and Mac.  Lead by Playstation 3 gamers, console plays have far surpassed the number of players accessing the game via home gaming consoles in any previous month(s).  Not to be outdone, Wii owners are in a strong 2nd place.  Both platform gamers may access the game via their in console internet browser.

Warrior Quest is a traditional RPG the provides a healthy mixture of card based battles, monster collections, and turn based combat to provide a rich and accessible RG experience.  The game is playable on a variety of platforms including PC, Mac, Wii and PS3 via their respective browsers.  In addition to the traditional RPG gaming experience, Warrior Quest also features online leader boards and scoring that allow players to compete in weekly, monthly, and all time charts, regardless of which platform they choose to play on.  Again, the title is free-to-play, with premium content due out in the coming months.  No official word yet, but we’re banking on premium content, features, and in-game items to come via micro-transactions.

Providing a perhaps needed boost, the sudden upswing in players comes just days after the publisher, NextGenBooks.com announced that it will be changing it’s name and rebranding as mikomi.info.  Mikomi.info is now live, but NextGenBooks.com URL’s will continue to redirect for a some time.

NextGenBooks/Mikomi’s other now free-to-play title, The Half Broken Crown: The Broken Kingdoms has also seen a massive upswing in plays since it’s recent relaunch.  Like it’s sibling, it too has seen a dramatic increase in use via gaming consoles, outnumbering plays on both PC and Mac.

The Half Broken Crown: Broken Kingdoms is a point and click adveture title with cross platform live chat abilities.  This title also has available versions for PSP and Nintendo DS via the browser interface.  Keep your eyes peeled for a special re-release of The Half Broken Crown: The Broken Kingdoms due out later this year.  Another major influx of console gamers?

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Innovative strategy in attracting new gamers to free to play, micro transaction based ijji.com

Thursday, July 24th, 2008

Trialpay and NHN USA have announced a partnership that will give online gamers 50 “G Coins”, the portal’s in game currency, just for completing a real world transaction via TrialPay.  TrialPay is a familiar e-commerce site where users can do everything from buying clothes, sending flowers, signing up for a movie rental service, etc.

With the increasing popularity of Free to Play games in North America, thousands of returning and new gamers are arriving at ijji.com’s portal everyday.  To sweeten the deal, and in an attempt to bring the ‘casual gamer’ into the fold, NHN brokered the partnership with TrialPay.

Ijji.com already has 6 Million registered users, and is rapidly becoming a hotspot for any and all things free to play.  The portal is home to a wide ranging catalogue of unique online games that run the gamut on interests and styles.  Hardcore FPSs and Fantasy role players are the most popular and appeal to the widest range of ijji’s registrants.  Players utilize G coins to customize every aspect of their gaming experience.

“This partnership with TrialPay helps everyone enjoy the advantages of using G Coins simply by doing business with name-brand advertisers,” said Whon Namkoong, CEO, NHN USA Inc. “Virtual money makes a good online gaming experience event even better. Whether you’re a Drift City racer looking to upgrade your car or a Luminary adventurer in need of a Miracle Hammer or Teleportation Ticket, the TrialPay partnership enables our community to get the G Coins necessary to ‘purchase’ virtual goods for free.”

“NHN USA’s ijji.com has quickly emerged as one of the most popular online gaming destinations in North America, and we are thrilled to partner with them as they continue to bring more players into the incredibly lucrative F2P U.S. market with the site,” said Alex Rampell, co-founder and CEO, TrialPay. “TrialPay has partnered with more than 2,000 advertisers, so there is an ideal offer for every ijji.com user.”

To get 50 G Coins for free through TrialPay, please visit: https://billing.ijji.com/payment/freeGCoin.nhn

About NHN USA
Headquartered in Irvine, Calif., NHN USA, Inc. is the North American subsidiary of Korea’s leading Internet company NHN. Founded in 2006, NHN USA has quickly emerged as a premier online entertainment publisher. The company’s game portal ijji.com, which boasts more than six million unique registered gamers, hosts a diverse suite of free-to-play online games each with an optional micro-currency model that enables players to enhance their gaming experiences by purchasing in-game items. ijji.com’s extensive game portfolio includes GUNZ The Duel®, SOLDIER FRONT™, GUNBOUND® Revolution, DRIFT CITY™, LUMINARY Rise of the GoonZu™ and MINING BOY™, and will soon include the highly-anticipated Unreal Engine 3-based massively multiplayer online first-person shooting (MMOFPS) game Huxley.

About TrialPay
TrialPay unites advertisers, merchants and shoppers to create the first payment platform that benefits all parties. Using TrialPay, merchants turn lost and indecisive shoppers into paying customers by giving away their product for free when a shopper completes an offer from blue-chip advertisers. Advertisers pay a bounty that equals or exceeds the merchant’s regular price to create a profitable transaction out of a stalled or abandoned cart. TrialPay ensures that every shopper finds an offer that compels him or her to purchase by pairing premium brands with the added value of a free product. With TrialPay everyone wins: shoppers get a free product, advertisers acquire new customers and merchants earn significant revenue from lost or unlikely customers.

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Splitscreen Studios previews free to play ‘Pirate Galaxy’

Monday, July 14th, 2008

German game developer Splitscreen Studios recently previewed a promising new title ‘Pirate Galaxy’.  The space combat game is set in the distant future where players battle to break free from the tyranny of ruthless alien oppressors.

Splitscreen is focusing on two major factors with this title.  The first featuring “breakthrough 3D graphics with astonishing visual effects that push the envelope in the browser based games segment”, and the second, a low to no barrier for entry for casual gamers.

According to Splitscreen, “You start with a modestly equipped spaceship, fighting to collect valuable crystals that you can use to upgrade, repair and customize your ship. Explore far away worlds as your ship becomes more robust and powerful. While the game is completely free to play, certain upgrades to your ship can be voluntarily purchased through the game’s integrated shop system.”

Pirate Galaxy heralds another development in lowering the barrier to entry by offering a free to play entry model, while offering players micro transaction options to upgrade their gaming experience.  On the technology side, Splitscreen keeps the experience high, while meeting a broad base of playbility.  “The advanced DirectX-based rendering engine supports all common graphics cards, dynamically adapting the graphical level of detail to the capacities of the computer that the game runs on. This ensures an optimal playing experience even on less powerful PCs.”

Pirate Galaxy is currently under development and scheduled for release later this year.  More info available at www.pirategalaxy.com.

Splitscreen Studios GmbH is a full-service game development company based in Hamburg, Germany. The company was founded in 2007 by former key employees of Bigpoint, Europe’s leading browser game publisher.

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Fatfoogoo goes b2b with bbq flava

Wednesday, June 4th, 2008

Focusing not only on the needs of the player alone, after careful research and consideration, your favorite foogoos are now opening the doors to partnerships with individual game publishers. No worries, the current state of fatfoogoo isn’t going anywhere, and we’ve still got your back for all things trading. We’ve simply added another dish to the menu.

We took a long hard look at not only the technologies that we’ve developed in house, the experience and knowledge that we’ve gained, but also at what players and publishers across the world are looking for in a gaming experience. Combine that with the current state of the industry and the tremendous interest and revenue streams in the micro transaction field, adding the fatfoogoo partnership program was a no brainer.

In a recent interview fatfoogoo CEO Martin Herdina sites, “The trading and selling of virtual assets is truly the future of online gaming. It is an important alternative business model to the classical subscription fee-based programs that are currently dominating the industry. Fatfoogoo looks to fulfill a demand for this market. Our new Partnership program enables us to provide the best of both worlds: Primary Market trading, i.e. Publisher to Player and Secondary Market Trading, i.e. Player to Player trading. With the incredible growth of both primary and secondary trading markets, most major publishers understand that there is a need for an independently operated, fair and secure marketplace for virtual goods and services.”

And what a demand it is. The secondary trading market for virtual assets alone is currently growing at astonishing rates, going from revenues of approximately $1 billion in 2006 to an expected $7 billion in 2009, according to Nielsen.

This model has already been proven in Asia with Maple Story and Kartrider, both published by Nexon games. Research has shown that 8%-30% of all players purchase items via micro transactions. This in turn results in a higher revenue stream for publishers as opposed to the traditional subscription fee model. According to industry experts, on average, ‘Free to Play’ games generate anywhere between $15-$20/month. In the April edition of Fortune Magazine, senior writer Devin Leonard weighed in on the future of gaming:

(Game Publisher) Nexon pioneered this business – hooking players with a seductive free game while urging them at every turn to purchase extras using prepaid debit cards sold at retail outlets like Target. Nexon collects ad revenue in overseas markets, but in the United States the big money so far is in these microtransactions: $1.6 million a month. John Chi, CEO of Nexon America, says that the Nexon card is the second-best-selling prepaid card at Target – after the iTunes card. (Target will say only that Nexon cards are “doing really well.”)

Our experience in the virtual world micro transaction field is unparalleled. Not only have we created a multilingual platform, currency, taxation, and support system, but also gained real life experience and have weeded out a lot of headaches. As with anything in life, nothing is 100% certain, but here at the foogoo, we’ve already dealt with a whole number of things that could go wrong, have fixed them, and have learned from them. No other system in the world can match our level of multi national experience.

Back at the top-secret underground foogoo labs, our partnership engineers are already hard at work developing solutions for clients. Stay tuned, as we’ll be announcing some of our exciting partnerships soon!

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Best Gaming Mouse? Logitech vs. Razer

Friday, May 23rd, 2008

So here’s the thing, how are YOU controlling your gaming experience? I ask only because I recently got a new rig, and of course I had the “shiny new toy, let me buy some other toys to go with it’s shopping” experience afterward.

That being said, I use my machine not only for pwning some n00bs, but also for graphics (photoshop and illustrator) and purchased a wacom bamboo graphics tablet. I also like to edit video, and purchased a NuLOOQ to rapidly scrub through unedited video (it also makes for a very handy iTunes controller).

But when it came time for a main HID, I really started to look around. I’ve had the Logitech MX Laser pretty much since the first day it came out (before it was even labeled the MX1000 laser) and have been very happy with it. But lets face it, we’re all techno junkies, and if there’s something better out there: well goddamnit, I gotta have it!

So I started searching various other forums and pages, reviews and corporate homepages. The two names that I saw over and over were Logitech and Razer.

Logitech:

Logitech offers 5 ‘Gaming Grade‘ mice with only one cordless option. Sure, everyone tells me that I’m going to get a better response from a corded mouse, but personally, I’ve used a wireless mouse for so long now, I’m not sure I could really go back to giving up another USB port. But hey, maybe I really don’t know what I’m missing.

The two Logitech that showed up most often were the G7 (cordless, btw) and the G5 (corded, but with a swanky skin over it). While the G5 offers a custom weighting option, it looks as though the G7 does not. Similarly, Logitech’s newest offering the G9 also offers the included weights that you can either insert or remove from the mouse to fine tune you playing style. Neat concept, but I haven’t read any “OMFG u gotta get the G9, FTW!” reviews. It also looks slightly odd in my opinion. And alas, none of these mice have Mac support, which may not be the death bell, because technically, the MX1000 Laser doesn’t offer mac support either, but yet, a quick trip to the support downloads does offer a Mac OSX driver. Again, I know it’s time for a new mouse.

Razer:

Razer’s got 10 offerings currently available for your pwning pleasure. Until recently, Mac users were forced to deal with the (in my opinion) cheesy cousin of razer’s badboys. But, as of April 29th, Razer’s added the DeathAdder Mac edition for those of us playing on Jobs’ OS.

What can’t be said about Razer? I had the opportunity to use the Boomslang Collectors edition at a friends place, and I can honestly say that it’s the smoothest, most comfortable, most responsive mouse I’ve ever used, gaming or no gaming. Alas, no mac love for the collectors edition. Sure, I’ve read the forums where I can try and trick the mac into believing that it’s a mouse (as it normally shows up as a keyboard upon a simple plug in), but really, it’s just not as good as original drivers.

Fair enough, I’ll grant that Razer is not offering a cordless option, and maybe I should be taking notes on this one. Razer offers a wide variety of mice each with it’s own twists and quirks, sizes and weights.

So really: now it’s your turn *peeps* hit me back in the comments, what’s your personal preference when it comes to the mouse FTW!?

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